Music reviews: Enter Shikari, Holy Hum, Carla Bruni and Miley Cyrus

Enter Shikari: The Spark (PIAS): On its fifth album, this English quartet founded by singer Rou Reynolds and bassist Chris Batten may have finally found the spot where its mix of Britpop, rap and hardcore will reach an audience across the pond. The band has cracked the U.K. Top 10 a few times since launching in 1999, but seems to be in the same place Pulp was before Different Class; popular at home, beyond almost unknown. From the arena pomp of the quite paranoid lead-single, Live Outside, to the obvious anti-Brexit rage of Take My Country Back (Now look what we’ve done to ourselves/We’ve really f—-d it up this time), the band delivers its literate and arty concepts with clarity and honesty. Reynolds’ ode to his battles with depression titled, An Ode to Lost Jigsaw Pieces, is bound to be familiar to anyone who has ever been way down (In my chest there’s a thundering pain/It feels like God’s having a migraine/This is tough man). Elsewhere, the group gets into apocalyptic industrial grind (The Revolt of the Atoms), airy, jazz-inflected electro pop (Shinrin-yoku) and even the kind of rave rock that Senser used to do well. It’s a varied and heady mix.

Holy Hum: All of My Bodies (HolyHum.com): Vancouver artist Andrew Lee records under the name Holy Hum, making introspective lo-fi post rock with big atmospheric washes. It should come as no surprise that the themes of songs such as White Buzz are sad and the lyrics speak of loss. The project was conceived when Lee was by his late father’s bedside for a month while the former professional opera singer was fading on. The sonics of the droning, buzzing and humming lights, devices and monitors all contributed to developing the sounds of the album. The bulk of the recording was done at Lee’s home between 2013 and 2015 while Lee continued his art-school studies. As someone who has presented performance pieces of more abstract nature, All of My Bodies brings in the personal and narrative streams of the artist’s output. Where many such records can sink under the weight of their conceit, Lee has managed to sequence the album to flow from the intense, lengthy pain of the opening title track to stark Canadiana (Flower in the Snow), to quite abstract soundscapes such as Sun Breaking or Yoo Duk Lee. A late-night listen for sure.

Carla Bruni: French Touch (Universal): No less a master of easy-listening than David Foster produced the first English language record from French-Italian model, singer and celebrity Carla Bruni Sarkozy. It’s her sixth album and first to be entirely comprised of covers of well-known songs from artists such as the Rolling Stones (Miss You), Henry Mancini and Johnny Mercer (Moon River) and AC/DC (Highway to Hell). Each of these tunes, as well as such surprising songs as Depeche Mode’s Enjoy the Silence or the Clash’s Jimmy Jazz becomes a lightly swingy pop ditty that would fit right into one of those ’60s technicolor comedies. Hey, she wasn’t going to release a rap or a metal album was she? Rather, Bruni has done exactly what her album title states. She has put that distinctive French AAA style onto a selection of songs that are far less predictable than most of these collections usually are. No doubt, that’s what we are meant to think too as there isn’t so much as a breath out of place on this recording. It will certainly go well with post-collection show parties in Milan.

Miley Cyrus: Younger Now (Sony): If an artist as young as Cyrus can have a bucket list, then having your godmother duet with her must have been on it. On the chipper Rainbowland, her and Dolly Parton sing about being “every colour, every hue” and living “where skies are blue and things are grand and we’re free to be exactly who we are.” It’s as definitive a statement that Miley is shifting gears again and this time she is going the direction most expected she would all along. The 11 songs on Younger Now actually all reference the past more than anything she has done before. Week Without You is pure bobby-sox rock ‘n’ roll with a good bit of twang. Thinkin’ is new country with a bass line that won’t quit and there are plenty of stripped-down ballads like Malibu, Bad Mood and Miss You So Much. All of them showcase the one thing that has never been in doubt about this performer, her powerful and distinct voice. After the horrors of Miley Cyrus & Her Dead Petz — working with totally overrated hacks will do that — it’s good to see her back on track.

This Week's Flyers

Comments

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.